Packing container



July 11, 1967 P. A. LUTZ PACKING CONTAINER Filed Feb. 19. 1965 HVVENTOR PETER A. LUTZ United States Patent 3,330,438 PACKING CONTAINER Peter A. Lutz, 4 Goethestrasse, 6733 Hassloch, Pfalz, Germany Filed Feb. 19, 1965, Ser. No. 433,989 Claims priority, application Germany, Apr. 23, 1964, D 44,245 1 Claim. (Cl. 220-67) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention is especially designed to provide a protective seal for cans, drums and the like, such as may be used to contain heavy fluids such as hydrocarbon oils, grain and the like. The seal which is provided by the invention is designed especially for the bottom portion of the drum and by its nature reinforces the drum against damage in handling, which includes rolling and transport. Obviously, however, the drum may contain several such seals one at top and one at bottom. It is simply a means of extending the side wall and the bottom of the drum in overlapping relation, whereby the side wall itself forms an outer rim which is offset from the outer diameter of the drum. This side wall extension is in overlapping and nesting engagement with a corresponding extension of the bottom portion of the drum. The seal which is thus formed by the corresponding overlapping extensions of side wall and bottom is raised above the actual circular bottom (or top) portion of the drum which forms the closure end.

This invention relates to a packing container, and in particular to a cylindrical metal container having a thin wall, bottom and top. More specifically, the invention is concerned with connecting the bottom and, in some cases, top portion, of a metal drum using a three-fold connection.

The folding connection between the wall and bottom or top is known to be the weakest point of packing containers. It is the folding connection which is most easily damaged by mechanical impacts from the outside; for example, jolts or falls, which are usual occurrences in the course of conveyance and transportation. Additionally, such folding connections are subjected to high load pressure from the inside of the packing container. Such damages usually result in leakage of the container where its fold has been damaged.

Accordingly, several methods have been used in the past to achieve greater strength in the folding connection between the wall and top and/ or bottom of the packing container. One way, for example, is to attach a reinforcement metal ring around the folding connection, or to enclose such reinforcement ring into the folding connection itself. Another method of achieving greater strength between the wall and top and bottom connection is to weld the connection. Although these known modifications do strengthen the connection between wall and top and/ or bottom of the containers, they also incur disadvantages. For example, the attachment or folding-in reinforcing ring requires, apart form the adidtional material for the reinforcement rings, at least two further manufacturing processes, namely the production of such rings and the attachment or folding-in thereof. This is therefore both expensive and time-consuming. In the welded connection of walls and bottoms. it is well known that welding is an expensive process, and it is also time consuming.

To avoid these disadvantages, it is the object of this 3,330,438 Patented July 11, 1967 invention to arrange the container connection between wall and top and/or bottom in the form of a reinforced self sustaining connection.

A further objective is to provide in containers a novel system of connecting a closure to the container in which the closure comprises a part of the container per se, reinforcing the container and its contents against breakage and leakage.

The novel shape of the triple fold connection is made particularly clear in the figure showing a bisection of a wall-bottom connection and is illustrative of how the invention can be used. In the drawings, the walls are designated as 1; and the bottoms of the packing containers as 2.

The figure shows a cross-section of a side wall 1 and bottom closure 2 of a packing container, in which the basic three-fold connection is located above the bottom portion and along the side of the container. In this showing it will be noted that the side wall 1is extended at its free end to comprise the outermost protective shield for the extended free end of the bottom closure. The side wall free end is initially offset outwardly from the inner diameter of the drum, whereupon corresponding portions of side wall and bottom free ends engage in sealing contact adjacent the first of three folds. As illustrated, the bottom closure is extending upwardly at an angle of for a short segment to provide a bottom of the same inner diameter as the drum interior. The bottom free end is then extended outwardly from the packing container at an angle of 90 along with the side wall, to form an overlapping triple fold connection. The 90 folds are not abrupt but are rounded as illustrated. A total of three contiguous folds is made of the contacting free ends; but the longer extension of the side wall is twice folded about the terminal end of the closure, causing the terminal end of the side wall to nest between opposed portions of the closure.

What is claimed is:

A packing container comprising a cylindrical drum having a side wall and a bottom closure therefor, the wall and closure forming a seal;

(A) said bottom closure having an elongated free end a portion of which is extended upwardly in line with the side wall and a portion of which is bent outwardly of said drum;

(B) said side wall having a corresponding free end which is extended outwardly above the upwardly extending free end of the bottom closure; said side wall free end being longer than the bottom closure free end;

(C) said side wall free end and said bottom closure free end being in overlapping contacting engagement at a point which is outside of the outer diameter of the drum;

(D) plural folds of engaged free ends comprising three in number (1) a first fold being horizontally disposed of the point of contact of the free ends outwardly thereof and at a right angle to the side, turning the respective free ends downwardly and parallel to the side;

(2) a second of said folds being vertically disposed of the first of the folds, turning the overlapped free ends inwardly and at right angles to the side;

(3) a third of said folds being inwardly adjacent 3 v I r 4 the second of the folds, turning the overlapped References Cited free ends upwardly and parallel to the side; UNITED STATES PATENTS (4) the free end of said side wall being twice folded at its longer extension about the terminal por- 2576,5562 11/1951 Smlth et a1 220-78 tion of the bottom closure, whereby the terminal 5 FOREIGN PATENTS portion of the free end of the side wall is nested 219,826 11/1940 Switzerlan between opposed portions of the free end of the bottom closure all to form a seal for the con- THERON E. CONDON, Primal? Examiner tainer which is raised above the bottom of the closure and outside of its outer diameter. 10 JAMES R MARBERTV Exammer' 

